Wage and Hour Division (WHD)

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BOSTON -- Voorhees International Inc. of Fenton, Mo., and four of its subcontractors have paid 41 low-wage employees a total of $40, 609 in back wages after the U.S. Department of Labor determined they violated the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) while remodeling the Cambridge Marriott Hotel in Cambridge, Mass.

According to George Rioux, district director of the Labor Department’s Wage and Hour Division office in Boston, an investigation by his office found that construction workers employed by Voorhees; Steve's Floor and Wall of Watauga, Texas; JL Wallcovering and Painting of Anderson, S.C.; Steve Milton Painting of Louden, Tenn.; and GRJ Enterprises of Lodi, N.Y., were not properly compensated for all the hours they worked, and that the employers were not maintaining proper records of employees’ hours of work and rates of pay.

“This action demonstrates that the Labor Department is quite serious about enforcing the FLSA and ensuring that employees are always properly paid for all of the hours they work, in particular those workers employed in low-wage industries,” said Rioux.

He noted that most of the affected employees were out of state construction workers who were working more than 40 hours per work week without being properly compensated for the overtime hours.

The FLSA requires that employees be paid at least the applicable federal minimum wage and time and one-half their regular rate of pay for hours worked over 40 per week. It also requires employers to keep accurate records of employees’ wages, hours and other conditions of employment.

The Wage and Hour Division district office in Boston investigated this case. For more information about the requirements of the FLSA, call the U.S. Department of Labor’s toll-free help line at 1 (866) 4US-WAGE (487-9243). Information is also available on the Internet at www.wagehour.dol.gov.

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U.S. Department of Labor releases are accessible on the Internet at www.dol.gov. The information in this news release will be made available in alternate format (large print, Braille, audio tape or disc) from the COAST office upon request. Please specify which news release when placing your request at (202) 693-7828 or TTY (202) 693-7755. The Labor Department is committed to providing America’s employers and employees with easy access to understandable information on how to comply with its laws and regulations. For more information, please visit www.dol.gov/compliance.